Silent hero

A round of applause – no, a standing ovation, please – for a citizen of Dagupan named Edward Santos for rising up to the call for vigilance.

This man, a resident of Bonuan Boquig, concretely acted upon what majority of the general public prefer to just chat about to while time away or worse, simply turn a deaf ear on.

Santos has gallantly filed a graft and corruption complaint against Dagupan City officials for a project that has been marred by obvious irregularities from the beginning.

How many ordinary Dagupeños, or Pangasinenses, or Filipinos for that matter, can lay claim to such heroism?

Very, very few because the truth is, we are, sadly, a people known for our tolerance that borders on apathy. And that is one of the biggest reasons why corruption permeates every level of our government and society.

Despite our extensive laws and institutionalized mechanisms to fight graft in government, we have remained within the 8th rank among most corrupt countries in the world based on the 2006 survey of the Berlin-based organization Transparency International.

Santos also deserves extra acclaim for the utmost subtlety with which he carried out his heroic act.

He never went out of his way to grab media attention and grandstand about the battle he was putting up. That clearly reflects the sincerity of his intent. He did not call attention to himself. He patiently and quietly waited for the Office of the Ombudsman to act on his complaint.

And the Ombudsman has recognized Santos’s complaint and already given those charged – including former Mayor Benjamin Lim, city-administrator-turned-provincial-administrator Rafael Baraan, Assistant City Engineer Marcelo Prado, Assistant City Legal Officer Roy Laforteza, Planning Officer Emmanuel Palaganas, Budget  Officer Luz de Guzman, and all members of the Local Technical Committee – a deadline to submit their counter-affidavits.

The wheels of justice have started to spin. It would be tragic to allow anything to block it from moving swiftly.

The battle has just begun.

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments